Semiconductor chip

ABSTRACT

A semiconductor chip includes: a body; holes disposed in a first surface of the body; and a warpage preventing member including filling members disposed in the holes.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application is a divisional application of U.S. application Ser.No. 14/992,653 filed on Jan. 11, 2016, which claims the benefit ofKorean Patent Application No. 10-2015-0037959 filed on Mar. 19, 2015 inthe Korean Intellectual Property Office, the entire disclosure of whichis incorporated herein by reference for all purposes.

BACKGROUND 1. Field

The following description relates to a semiconductor chip, and moreparticularly, to a semiconductor chip that is resistant to warpage andhas excellent heat dissipation characteristics.

2. Description of Related Art

Recently, in accordance with the trend towards lightness,miniaturization, increases in operating speeds, multifunctionalization,improvements in performance, and the like, of electronic products,semiconductor chips mounted in such electronic products have beenrequired to have high degrees of reliability. Therefore, to protectsemiconductor chips from various external environmental factors such asdust and moisture, and from damage due to factors such as highelectrical loads, and the like, in order to optimize and significantlyimprove the electrical performance of semiconductor chips, demand hasgradually increased for a semiconductor package in which terminals forinputting signals to and outputting signals from a main board are formedusing a lead frame, a printed circuit board, or the like, that is moldedusing a sealant.

Generally, semiconductor packages have been provided as semiconductormodules in which semiconductor chips are mounted two-dimensionally on atleast one surface of a package board, such as the printed circuit board,through surface mount technology (SMT). When warpage or deformation isgenerated in the semiconductor chip, it may be difficult or impossibleto mount the semiconductor chip on the package board. Particularly, in acase in which the semiconductor chip is mounted on the package boardthrough a ball grid array (BGA) installed on the other surface thereof,a defect in which a certain amount of solder balls are not connected tothe package board may occur.

Therefore, a semiconductor chip with increased warpage resistance isdesired.

SUMMARY

This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are further described below in the DetailedDescription. This Summary is not intended to identify key features oressential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended tobe used as an aid in determining the scope of the claimed subjectmatter.

According to one general aspect, a semiconductor chip includes: a body;holes disposed in a first surface of the body; and a warpage preventingmember including filling members disposed in the holes.

The warpage preventing member may further include a surface membercovering the first surface of the body.

The filling members and the surface member may be formed as a singleintegrated structure.

The first surface of the body may oppose a second, mounting surface ofthe body.

The warpage preventing member may have a coefficient of thermalexpansion that is greater than a coefficient of thermal expansion of thebody.

The warpage preventing member may have thermal conductivity that isgreater than a thermal conductivity of the body.

The warpage preventing member may be formed of a metal or a resin.

The warpage preventing member may be formed of the metal and have aYoung's modulus that is greater than a Young's Modulus of the body.

The warpage preventing member may be formed of the resin and have acoefficient of thermal expansion that is greater than a coefficient ofthermal expansion of a solder resist layer provided on a second,mounting surface of the body.

Each of the holes and each of the filling members may extend onlypartially through the body.

According to another general aspect, a semiconductor chip includes: abody including an upper surface and a lower surface; holes penetratingthrough the upper surface and the lower surface; a solder resist layerdisposed on the upper surface or the lower surface; and a warpagepreventing member including filling members disposed in the holes, and asurface member disposed on one of the upper surface and the lowersurface opposing the other of the upper surface and the lower surface onwhich the solder resist layer is disposed.

The filling members and the surface member may be formed as a singleintegrated structure.

The warpage preventing member may have a coefficient of thermalexpansion that is greater than a thermal coefficient of expansion of thebody.

The warpage preventing member may have thermal conductivity that isgreater than a thermal conductivity of the body.

The warpage preventing member may be formed of a metal or a resin.

The warpage preventing member may be formed of the metal and have aYoung's modulus that is greater than a Young's modulus of the body.

The warpage preventing member may be formed of the resin and have acoefficient of thermal expansion that is greater than a thermalcoefficient of expansion of the solder resist layer.

Each of the holes and each of the filling members may extend entirelythrough the body.

Other features and aspects will be apparent from the following detaileddescription, the drawings, and the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor chip according to anembodiment.

FIG. 2A is a view illustrating a direction of force applied to a body ofthe semiconductor chip of FIG. 1 during grinding.

FIG. 2B is a view illustrating a warpage phenomenon occurring in thebody after grinding.

FIG. 3 is a view illustrating a movement path of heat generated in thesemiconductor chip of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor chip according toanother embodiment.

Throughout the drawings and the detailed description, the same referencenumerals refer to the same elements. The drawings may not be to scale,and the relative size, proportions, and depiction of elements in thedrawings may be exaggerated for clarity, illustration, and convenience.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following detailed description is provided to assist the reader ingaining a comprehensive understanding of the methods, apparatuses,and/or systems described herein. However, various changes,modifications, and equivalents of the methods, apparatuses, and/orsystems described herein will be apparent to one of ordinary skill inthe art. The sequences of operations described herein are merelyexamples, and are not limited to those set forth herein, but may bechanged as will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art, withthe exception of operations necessarily occurring in a certain order.Also, descriptions of functions and constructions that are well known toone of ordinary skill in the art may be omitted for increased clarityand conciseness.

The features described herein may be embodied in different forms, andare not to be construed as being limited to the examples describedherein. Rather, the examples described herein have been provided so thatthis disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will convey the fullscope of the disclosure to one of ordinary skill in the art.

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor chip 100 accordingto an embodiment. Referring to FIG. 1, the semiconductor chip 100includes a body 110, holes 110 a formed in a first, lower surface 110 bof the body 110, and a warpage preventing member 120.

The body 110 may be a substrate formed of silicon, which is a basematerial of a chip. Although not illustrated, various devices forprocessing and storing data, for example, a transistor, a diode, aresistor, a condenser, and the like, may be integrated in the body 110,and a circuit for electrically connecting these devices to each othermay be designed in the body 110.

In addition, a solder resist layer 111 is disposed on the a second,upper surface 110 c of the body 110 that opposes the first surface 110 bso as to protect the devices in the body 110 from an externalenvironment, prevent solder from hardening in an undesired position andprevent a solder bridge from being formed during soldering.Additionally, connection electrodes 112 for transferring signalsexternally and having a land shape (e.g., substantially flat, planar)are formed on the solder resist layer 110.

When the semiconductor chip 100 is mounted on a package board (notshown), the connection electrodes 112 may be electrically connected tocircuits of the package board through a ball grid array (BGA) schemeusing a solder ball or a wire bonding scheme. In this case, the secondsurface 110 c of the body 110 on which the connection electrodes 112 areformed may be disposed to face the package board. Therefore, in FIG. 1,the second surface 110 c of the body 110 may be provided as a mountingsurface with respect to the package board.

The body 110 may be prepared in the form of an individual chip having anapproximately rectangular parallelepiped shape after being cut or may beprepared in the form of a wafer before being cut. After various devicesare integrated in the body 110, grinding is performed on the firstsurface 110 b of the body 110, that is, a surface of the body 110opposing the surface of the body 110 on which the solder resist layer111 is formed, in order to adjust a final thickness.

FIG. 2A is a view illustrating a direction of force applied to the body110 during grinding. FIG. 2B is a view illustrating a warpage phenomenonoccurring in the body 110 after grinding.

Referring to FIG. 2A, stress is continuously applied to the body 110 ina direction in which the body 110 is ground (a direction of the arrowsin FIG. 2A) during grinding. As a result, when grinding ends, residualstress accumulated in the body 110 is removed at once, and force acts onthe body 110 as a reaction to the removal of the residual stress suchthat warpage is generated in the body 110, thereby causing the body 110to have a curved shape.

The warpage preventing member 120 is provided as a member for preventingthe above-mentioned warpage phenomenon. In detail, the holes 110 a areformed in the first surface 110 b of the body 110, that is, the groundsurface of the body 110, and the warpage preventing member 120 includesfilling members 120 a formed in the holes 110 a, as a first component.The holes 110 a and the filling members 120 a may be formed to have apredetermined depth without completely penetrating through the body 110,and may be formed in a dummy region of the body 110 so as not topenetrate through an integrated circuit of the body 110.

The warpage preventing member 120 is formed by filling the holes 110 awith a material of the warpage preventing member 120. The material ofthe warpage preventing member 120 covers the first surface 110 b of thebody 110 in which the holes 110 a are formed. More specifically, thewarpage preventing member 120 includes a surface member 120 b extendingexternally from the holes 110 a and formed on the surface of the body110, as a second component, together with the filling members 120 a.

As described above, since the filling members 120 a and the surfacemember 120 b are formed at a same time, they may be a single integratedstructure. Therefore, the warpage preventing member 120 may be closelyadhered to the body 110 without using a separate adhering member. As aresult, additional costs required at the time of forming an adheringmember may be eliminated, and heat generated at the time of an operationof the semiconductor chip is not blocked by an adhering member, wherebyheat dissipation efficiency may be significantly improved.

The warpage preventing member 120 may be formed of a material, forexample, a metal or a resin based material having a coefficient ofthermal expansion (CTE) that is higher than a CTE of silicon (Si), whichis a base material of the body 110. Therefore, the warpage preventingmember 120 may be expanded at the time of high-temperature treatmentsuch as reflow or the like, to straighten the body 110, which was warpedduring grinding to be substantially in parallel to a length direction,thereby reducing the warpage of the body 110.

In addition, in a case in which the warpage preventing member 120 isformed of a metal such as copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), nickel (Ni), orgold (Au) having a Young's modulus greater than a Young's modulus of thebody 110, the warpage preventing member 120 serves as a stiffenersupporting the body 110 in a direction perpendicular to the surface ofthe body 110, whereby warpage preventing characteristics may be furtherimproved.

Further, the metal or the resin material of the warpage preventingmember 120 may have thermal conductivity that is greater than a thermalconductivity of silicon (Si), which is the base material of the body110. In this case, the semiconductor chip 100 may exhibit improved heatdissipation characteristics.

FIG. 3 is a view illustrating a movement path of heat generated in asemiconductor chip according to an embodiment. Referring to FIG. 3, theheat in the semiconductor chip 100 moves toward the filling members 120a, and the heat transferred to the filling members 120 a is radiatedexternally through the surface member 120 b which directly contacts air.

As described above, the filling members 120 a may have a pillar shapeand are inserted into the body 110, such that they serve as pathsthrough which the heat in the semiconductor chip 100 is absorbed andthen transferred to the surface member 120 b, thereby significantlyimproving overall heat dissipation characteristics of the semiconductorchip. The heat dissipation characteristics of the semiconductor chip 100may be further improved when the warpage preventing member 120 is formedof a metal having excellent thermal conductivity.

In a case in which a resin is used as the material of the warpagepreventing member 120, a polymer such as epoxy, or the like, having aCTE that is greater than a CTE of the solder resist layer 111 may beused as a resin material.

Since the solder resist layer 111 is generally formed of polyimidehaving a CTE that is greater than a CTE of the body 110, when thewarpage is generated in the body 110, the solder resist layer 111 isexpanded in a direction in which the body 110 is warped, such that thewarpage of the body 110 is further increased. However, when the warpagepreventing member 120 having the CTE greater than the CTE of the solderresist layer 111 is provided, and more specifically, when the surfacemember 120 b of the warpage preventing member 120 is provided on thefirst surface 110 b of the body 110 opposing the second surface 110 c ofthe body 110 on which the solder resist layer 110 is formed, force actsin a direction opposing force applied by the solder resist layer 111 tooffset the force applied by the solder resist layer 111. Thus, thegeneration of warpage in the body 110 is suppressed.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor chip 200 accordingto another embodiment. Referring to FIG. 4, in the semiconductor chip200 may have a rectangular parallelepiped shape and includes a first,lower surface 210 b, a second, upper surface 210 c opposing the firstsurface 210 b, and holes 210 a penetrating entirely through the body 210and through the first and second surfaces 210 b and 210 c of the body210 in a vertical direction.

In addition, a solder resist layer 211 is disposed on any one of thefirst and second surfaces 210 b and 210 c of the body 210 that isprovided as a mounting surface. Therefore, first ends of the holes 210 aare blocked by the solder resist layer 211, and a warpage preventingmember 220 is formed by filling a metal or resin based material having aCTE that is greater than a CTE of the body 210 through second ends ofthe holes 210. That is, the warpage preventing member 220 includesfilling members 220 a formed in the holes 210 a and extending entirelythrough the body 210, and a surface member 220 b formed integrally withthe filling members 220 a and formed on the first surface 210 b of thebody 210 opposing the second surface 210 c of the body 210 on which thesolder resist layer 211 is formed.

As described above, the solder resist layer 211 serves as a shieldinglayer shielding the first ends of the holes 210 a before the warpagepreventing member 220 is formed, thereby preventing a material of thewarpage preventing member 220 from protruding externally of the body210, as well as serving as a protecting layer.

The warpage preventing member 220 may be formed of a metal or a resinhaving thermal conductivity greater than that of silicon (Si), which isa base material of the body 210, similar to the previous embodiment. Ina case in which the warpage preventing member 220 is formed of a metal,a metal material having a Young's modulus that is greater than a Young'smodulus of the body 210 may be used. In a case in which the warpagepreventing member 220 is formed of a resin, a polymer having a CTE thatis greater than a CTE of the solder resist layer 211 may be used tofurther resist a warpage phenomenon.

As set forth above, in the semiconductor chips according to thedisclosed embodiments, a warpage preventing member including fillingmembers inserted into holes in a body of the semiconductor chip, and asurface member formed integrally with the filling members, is providedin the body, whereby a warpage phenomenon of the semiconductor chip maybe significantly decreased.

In addition, the heat in the semiconductor chips may be radiated throughthe filling members, whereby heat dissipation characteristics of thesemiconductor chip may be improved.

While this disclosure includes specific examples, it will be apparent toone of ordinary skill in the art that various changes in form anddetails may be made in these examples without departing from the spiritand scope of the claims and their equivalents. The examples describedherein are to be considered in a descriptive sense only, and not forpurposes of limitation. Descriptions of features or aspects in eachexample are to be considered as being applicable to similar features oraspects in other examples. Suitable results may be achieved if thedescribed techniques are performed in a different order, and/or ifcomponents in a described system, architecture, device, or circuit arecombined in a different manner, and/or replaced or supplemented by othercomponents or their equivalents. Therefore, the scope of the disclosureis defined not by the detailed description, but by the claims and theirequivalents, and all variations within the scope of the claims and theirequivalents are to be construed as being included in the disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A semiconductor chip comprising: a bodycomprising an upper surface and a lower surface; holes penetratingthrough the upper surface and the lower surface; a solder resist layerdisposed on the upper surface or the lower surface; and a warpagepreventing member comprising filling members disposed in the holes, anda surface member disposed on one of the upper surface and the lowersurface opposing the other of the upper surface and the lower surface onwhich the solder resist layer is disposed.
 2. The semiconductor chip ofclaim 1, wherein the filling members and the surface member are formedas a single integrated structure.
 3. The semiconductor chip of claim 1,wherein the warpage preventing member has a coefficient of thermalexpansion that is greater than a thermal coefficient of expansion of thebody.
 4. The semiconductor chip of claim 1, wherein the warpagepreventing member has thermal conductivity that is greater than athermal conductivity of the body.
 5. The semiconductor chip of claim 1,wherein the warpage preventing member is formed of a metal or a resin.6. The semiconductor chip of claim 5, wherein the warpage preventingmember is formed of the metal and has a Young's modulus that is greaterthan a Young's modulus of the body.
 7. The semiconductor chip of claim5, wherein the warpage preventing member is formed of the resin and hasa coefficient of thermal expansion that is greater than a thermalcoefficient of expansion of the solder resist layer.
 8. Thesemiconductor chip of claim 1, wherein each of the holes and each of thefilling members extend entirely through the body.